Roof and roof covering



F C OVERBURY ROOF AND ROOF COVERING Filed. Apr.

Mar. 6, 1. 923.

Patented Mar. O, W23,

raiser caries.

- FREDERICK C. OVERBUR-Y, OF HILLSDALE, NEW JERSEY, ASSIGNOR TO THE FLINT- KOTE-COMPANY', OF BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS, A CORPORATION OF MASSACHU- SETTS.

, Application filed April 13, 1918. Serial No, 228,467.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, FREDERICK C. OVER- BURY, a citizen of the United States, residing at Hillsdale,'in the county of Bergen and State of New; Jersey have invented newand useful Improvements in Roofs and Roof Coverings, of which the. following is a specification.

This invention has relation to roofs and 10 roofing material, and it has for its object to provide certain improvements therein as will be hereinafter set forth.

Owing to the growing scarcity of wooden shingles and the danger of fire where they are used, for some years there'has been a marked increase in the use of roofin material fabricated of asphalt-saturate and coated felt. Such material has been supplied in sheet form, and also as shingle 0 strips or slabs and individual shingles, and

has been rendered fire-resistant by an exterior layer of grit embedded in thellayer or coating of asphalt. The use of the grit in different colors has permitted the attainment of ornamental effects and has resulted in the employment of such roofing materials on high grade residences and other structures. In addition to such roofings, which are flexible by reason of the materials incident to their construction, there have been placed on the market individual shingles or tiles consisting of molded material such as a mixture of asbestos or other fiber and a solidifying body of the character of Portland cement or concrete.

In all of these instances, the various more ing elements or units have required the employment of a continuous supportin surface such as afforded by a layer of cards 40 secured upon the supporting timbers or rafters. The object of this invention is to obviate the necessity of providing such a continuous support, by providing roofing elements of such inherent rigidity that they may be secured directly to the rafters or timbers without the intervention of boarding, and to fabricatesaid elements in such ing adjacent rafters and of being secured directly thereon, and of such width that, when la1d in overlapping horizontal rows in simulation of tiles or shingles. each slab overlaps portions of the slabs of two lower next adjacent rows. To present the appearance of shingles or tiles when laid, these slabs are notched or serrated, as the case may be,

or they are striped or ornamented according to requirements. B providing the opposite ends of each slab w1th portions to interlock with compartmental portions on the ends of adjacent slabs, their alinement ma be preserved, and each may be prevented rom dislocation in case of an imperfect fastening.

It is desirable that the elements or slabs of one row shall break joint with those of the continguous rows, and therefore I preferably employ in the roof construction pairs of timbers or supporting rafters, spaced apart a distance equal to half the width of one of the tabs or projections, or its equivalent of a slab. Thus'the ends of the slabs of the alternating rows of slabs may be seecured to the alternate rafters or timbers of each pair.

Referring to the accompanying draw- 111 igure 1 represents aport-ion of a roof structure embodying my invention.

Figure 2 illustrates one of the slabs formed with notches.

Figure 3 illustrates a slab which is striped -weather-proof,

'rodible slab. For example, I may employ i through several overlapping slabs and shows how they may be tapered from bottom to if desired.

I do not regard it as essential that any articular non-metallic ingredients shoul be employed in the fabrication of the slabs, so long as it is capable of being either cast or molded and will set or solidify and furnish a rigid, substantially water-proof and rust-proof and non-cora mixture of asbestos fiber and Portland cement, or any suitable CGHIGIlt-lt-lOUS materials which chemically react, on being cast or molded, to produce the required result.

- The material preferably should be subjected to great pressure in the process of molding, and it may have incorporated therein waterproof coloring matter. In fact, when forming the slabs in molds, there may be placed a thin layer of grit in the bottom thereof,

- so that the finished slab will possess an exterior rough layer of grit of the desired color.

The several figures of the drawing, which illustrate difi'erent forms of slabs, require littleexplanation. In figure 2, the slab 10 is formed with notches 11, which provide a plurality of tabs 12 like the butts of shin les, along its lower edge, and at one end as the projections 13 and recesses or sockets 14.- to interlock with similar projections 15 and notches 16 on the opposite end of an adjacent slab. While I do not mean to be understood as limiting myself to any definite proportions, but as indicating the optimum dimensions for certain purposes. I may say that the slab 10 maybe 32 inches long, 16 inches in width, that the notches may be an inch in width and 7 inches long, and that each tab 12 may be 7%} inches in width. The projections 13 and 15 should extend beyond the end of the slab far enough to project entirely across the notches between it and the adjacent slabs and ex-' tend into the recesses 16 and 14 thereof.

In Figures 3 and 4, the dark colored stripes 17 and'l8 may be formed by small blocks of colored material previously mold ed, and then incorporated in the slab when it is formed.

In Figure 7, the lower portion of the slab is molded with a curved or waved surface to resemble curved tiles; and in Figure 8, the slabs are shown as tapering from bottom to top.

In building a roof, the roof timbers or rafters 20, 20, to receive and support the slabs 10 of Figure 2, for example, may be spaced apart 30 inches from centerto center, so thatthe slabs may have their abutting ends meet in the center of the timbers, and may brid e the space between said timbers, as shown in Figure 1. The slabs are formed with one or more nail-holes at their ends, and preferably in the upper corners, through which the nails 19 are driven directly into the timbers. Supplemental or additional timbers 21 alternate with those at 20, and are spaced apart far enough therefrom so that, when the next higher row of slabs are laid, the notches of one row of slabs are midway between the notches 11 of the adjacent rows. For example, the main and supplemental timbers may be spaced 3% inches apart from center to center and secure the desired results.

A roof structure, such as described, is light and inexpensive, and of course the same structure may be employed forthe side walls of a building. I should not regard it as a departure from the invention it a layer of sheathing material were first laid upon the rafters before the slabs were secured in place, or even if boards were laid below the slabs in certain cases where the slabs required reinforcement in strength.

Having thus explained the nature of my said invention and described a way of making and using the same, although without attempting to set forth all of the forms in which it may be made or all of the modes of its use, what I claim is:

v A roof or wall structure comprising elongated non-metallic rigid slabs laid in overlapping horizontal rows and adapted to simulate a plurality of spaced tiles or shingles.

and two sets of parallel timbers supporting said plates, the members of one set being arranged relatively close to the members of the other set and the members of each'set being separated a distance slightly less than the length of the slabs and the meeting ends of slabs in adjacent rows being attached to different sets of timbers, for the purpose described.

i In testimony whereof I have aflixed my signature.

FREDERICK c. OVERBURY. 

